How to Remove Hoopla Search

What Is Hoopla Search?

HooplaSearch is adware and a browser hijacker that can get into your PC when you download and install software for free. HooplaSearch changes your browser homepage to nt.hooplasearch.com and your default search provider to search.searchvoyage.com. HooplaSearch also injects ads labeled Related Search by HooplaSearch into search result pages and makes pop-up ads appear when you browse the web. If you encountered such ads and redirects and want to remove Hoopla Search from your computer, this step-by-step guide is designed to help you.

Is Hoopla Search a Virus?

HooplaSearch is a mild form of malware, a potentially unwanted program (PUP). It gets installed through the use of deceptive techniques: it is offered as an optional program in some freeware installers and gets installed by default unless the user turns it down. At the same time various tricks are employed to prevent him from doing just that. HooplaSearch collects some of the user’s Internet-related data (pages viewed, searches entered) and uses it to load customized ads. Ads by Hoopla Search and altered homepage and search engine generate revenue for its owners while not bringing anything useful for the users.

How to Remove Hoopla Search

The simplest method to uninstall Hoopla Search is to run an anti-malware program capable of detecting browser hijackers in general and Hoopla Search in particular. Norton Security is one of such tools; it finds and removes all files, folders and registry entries left by Hoopla Search.

Download SpyHunter

Other software that may be able to get rid of Hoopla Search:
Norton (Windows, macOS, iOS, Android) The link may not work correctly if your country is currently under sanctions.

You can also try to remove Hoopla Search by hand using the following instructions.

Remove Hoopla Search From Programs and Features

Go to Programs and Features, uninstall Hoopla Search if you can find it there. If it is not there, uninstall suspicious programs, programs you don’t remember installing, or programs you installed just before Hoopla Search appeared on your computer. If you are not sure if a program is safe, look for the answer on the Internet.

Windows XP:

1. Click Start.
2. In the Start menu select Settings => Control Panel.
3. Find and click Add or Remove Programs.
4. Look for Hoopla Search in the list. If you find the app, highlight it.
5. Click Remove.

Windows Vista:

1. Click Start.
2. In the Start menu select Control Panel.
3. Find and click Uninstall a program.
4. Look for Hoopla Search in the list. If you find the app, highlight it.
5. Click Uninstall.

Windows 7:

1. Click Start.
2. In the Start menu select Control Panel.
3. Find and select Programs and Features or Uninstall a program.
4. Look for Hoopla Search in the list. If you find the app, highlight it.
5. Click Uninstall.

Windows 8 / Windows 8.1:

1. Press and hold Windows key and hit X key.
2. Select Programs and Features from the menu.
3. Look for Hoopla Search in the list. If you find the app, highlight it.
4. Click Uninstall.

Windows 10:

1. Press and hold Windows key and hit X key.
2. Select Programs and Features from the menu.
3. Look for Hoopla Search in the list. If you find the app, highlight it.
4. Click Uninstall.

Remove Hoopla Search From Browsers

To get rid of Hoopla Search, either reset browser settings or remove Hoopla Search and any suspicious extensions from browsers and set new tab page and default search provider.

Reset Google Chrome Settings:

Note: This will disable your extensions and themes, clear cookies and site data, as well as change content settings, start page, new tab page and search engine to default.

1. Open a new tab.
2. Copy and paste into the address bar: chrome://settings/resetProfileSettings
3. Press Enter.
4. In the dialog box click Reset.

Alternative Way to Get Rid of Hoopla Search in Google Chrome:

1. Click menu button .
2. Select More tools ⇒ Extensions.
3. To remove an extension, click on a trashcan to the right of it.
4. Click Remove in the dialog box.
5. Right-click the address bar and select Edit search engines….
6. Select the search provider you want and click Make default next to it.
7. Click an x button next to hijacker search engine to remove it from the list.
8. Click Done.
9. Under On startup section select Open the New Tab page.

Reset Mozilla Firefox Settings:

Note: Your extensions and themes, among other things, will get deleted.

1. Click on menu button .
2. Click on help button and select Troubleshooting Information.
3. Click Refresh Firefox… in the top-right corner.
4. In the dialog box click Refresh Firefox.

Alternative Way to Get Rid of Hoopla Search in Mozilla Firefox:

1. Click on menu button and select Add-ons.
2. Go to Extensions tab.
3. To uninstall an add-on, click on Remove button next to it.

Note: If the extension is impossible to delete, click on => => Restart with Add-ons Disabled…. In the dialog boxes click Restart => Start in Safe Mode. Restart Firefox in normal mode after you are finished.

4. Click on the search icon in the search bar and click Change Search Settings.
5. Select search engine you want from the drop-down menu.
6. Highlight the hijacker search engine in the table below and click Remove.
7. Go to General tab.
8. Under Startup section click Restore to Default.

Reset Internet Explorer Settings:

Note: This will remove most of your saved browser data, including extensions, passwords and the majority of browser settings.

1. Click Tools button in the top-right corner.
2. Select Internet options.
3. Go to Advanced tab.
4. Click Reset… button.
5. Put checkmark in Delete personal settings checkbox.
6. Click Reset.

Alternative Way to Get Rid of Hoopla Search in Internet Explorer:

1. Click Tools button in the top-right corner.
2. Select Manage add-ons.
3. In the drop-down menu under Show: select All add-ons.
4. To delete an add-on, double-click it, in the new window click Remove.
5. Go to Search Providers tab.
6. Right-click the search engine you want and click Set as default.
7. Right-click on the hijacker search engine and click Remove.
8. Click Close.
9. Click Tools button .
10. Select Internet options.
11. Under Home page section click Use new tab.
12. Click OK.

Reset Opera Settings:

Note: This will delete all saved data including bookmarks and passwords and return the browser to freshly installed state.

1. Exit Opera browser.
2. Open File Explorer.
3. Go to C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Opera\Opera, where username is the name of your Windows account.
4. Find and delete Operapref.ini file.

Alternative Way to Get Rid of Hoopla Search in Opera:

1. Press Ctrl +Shift + E keys to open extensions manager.
2. To remove the add-on, click on the x button next to it.
3. Click OK when asked to confirm.
4. Click on the top-left corner, select Settings.
5. In the Search section select one of search engines from the list.
6. In the On startup section select Open the start page.
7. Click OK.

Fix Browser Shortcuts

1. Right-click Internet Explorer shortcut on Desktop.
2. Select Properties.
3. Target text field under Shortcut tab should only contain the path to .exe file, put in quotes. If there’s a URL after the closing quotation mark, delete it.
4. Click OK.
5. Repeat the steps with Internet Explorer shortcuts on the taskbar at the bottom of the screen and in Start Menu.
6. Repeat the same with all other browsers’ shortcuts.

How to Protect Your PC From Hoopla Search and Other Browser Hijackers

• Get a powerful anti-malware software, capable of detecting and eliminating PUPs. Having several on-demand scanners would be a good idea too.
• Keep Windows firewall enabled or get a third-party one.
• Keep your OS, browsers and security utilities updated. Malware creators find new browser and OS vulnerabilities to exploit all the time. Software writers, in turn, release patches and updates to get rid of the known vulnerabilities and lesser the chance of malware penetration. Antivirus program’s signature databases get updated every day and even more often to include new virus signatures.
• Adjust your browsers’ settings to block pop-ups and to load plug-ins only when clicked.
• Download and use Adblock, Adblock Plus, uBlock or one of the similar trustworthy extensions for blocking third-party advertisements on web-sites.
• Don’t just click on any link you see while browsing the web. That applies particularly to links in comments, on forums, or in instant messengers. Pretty often these are spam links. Sometimes they are used for increasing the traffic to websites, but often enough they will land you on pages that will try to execute a malicious code and infect your computer. Links from your friends are suspect too: the person who shares a cute video might not know that the page contains threatening script.
• Don’t download software from unverified web-sites. You can easily download a trojan (malware that pretends to be a useful application); or some unwanted programs could get installed along with the app.
• When installing freeware or shareware, be sensible and don’t rush through the process. Choose Custom or Advanced installation mode, look for checkboxes that ask for your permission to install third-party apps and uncheck them, read End User Licence Agreement to make sure nothing else is going to get installed. You can make exceptions for the apps you know and trust, of course. If declining from installing unwanted programs is not possible, we advise you to cancel the installation completely.